The present invention relates to precious metal alloys, and, more particularly, to such alloys which are especially adapted for electronic applications.
As is well known, precious metal alloys have been favored for a number of electronic applications where low contact resistance and/or noise is desired over extended periods of time. This is particularly true when the electronic products incorporating such elements may be exposed to relatively high temperatures, high humidity, sulfurous or other corrosive atmospheres, etc. Alloys with high gold and platinum contents were early favored for such applications, but the cost of such alloys became prohibitive for many applications and militated against more widespread use. This brought about efforts to develop alloys based upon less costly metals. As a result, palladium alloys became widely utilized in an effort to provide such desirable properties as corrosion and tarnish resistance at a lower cost. However, palladium alloys are also relatively expensive, and this cost has militated against still wider use.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a novel silver/palladium alloy which exhibits a high degree of resistance to oxidation and tarnish and provides good electrical properties.
It is also an object to provide such an alloy which is relatively low in cost in comparison to alloys having higher contents of noble metals.
Another object is to provide electronic components fabricated from such alloys and which exhibit desirable resistance to oxidation and tarnish as well as controlled flexibility for contact applications.